Miter saws are ubiquitous in woodshops, schools, construction sites and manufacturing facilities of all kinds. Miter saws must be able to move through multiple axes and also be able to slide forward to execute cuts. Miter saw cutting positions are routinely changed by a user several times each few minutes. The saw movements and the different axes of cuts necessitate a relatively large working area in which broadly ejected saw dust and debris quickly accumulate. Considerable amounts of debris are generated by a miter saw in a very short time period.
Saw dust contains any number of contaminants and allergens, many of which are toxic to humans and animals. The debris should be kept from a workplace environment for a number of health, safety and cleanliness reasons.
While most machines in a workplace have good containment and collection systems, miter saws are conspicuously underserved in that way. Previous attempts to provide containment are far from effective. Most saw manufacturers provide limited means of containment, most often relying on a small dust collection bag attached to the saw blade housing. The bags fill up in mere minutes and are often removed by users as a result. Even when in use, the bags are inadequate to collect the substantial dust and debris generated by the rotating movement of the saw blade which fans the material in all directions, including directly into the user's face. Some attempts to provide a universal device have had limited success, but none offer a complete solution. For example, some shroud devices are positioned behind the saw to provide partial collection but need to be repositioned as the saw travels through different cutting axes. The requirement to stop work and reposition the shroud interferes with work progress and renders these devices impractical.
Other prior art dust collector devices comprise a large canvas shroud to ostensibly cover the saw and table to enable a collection of debris into a bag under the table. These tent-type devices obscure the available light around the saw area and do nothing to keep dust out of the air around the saw operator or others in the work area.
Accordingly, there is an urgent but as of yet unmet need in the art for a miter saw dust collector apparatus that: 1) collects debris across multiple saw movements and cutting axes; 2) reduces air-borne saw dust contaminants to safe levels; 3) does not require a user to frequently stop work to empty out bags or small containers attached to the saw blade housing; 4) does not require repositioning for different cutting axes; and, 5) does not obscure light from reaching the saw.